Liverpool stars eye Reds’ return to Champs League

BANGKOK – Liverpool FC legends Ian Rush and Dietmar Hamann both expressed confidence the Reds will do better in the coming season of the Premier League and eventually return to the UEFA Champions League.

“I think we have a stronger team than last year and I think the good expectation is finishing in the Top 4 (of the Premier League) then in the Champions League and then take it from there,” Rush, the Reds’ celebrated top scorer with 346 goals, said during the public meet-and-greet event of the 2013 LFC Asia Tour presented by Standard Chartered here.

Liverpool, a five-time European champion, wound up seventh in the Premier League in 2011-12 with 61 points on a 16-13-9 win-draw-loss card. The finish sent them into the second-tier UEFA Europa League instead of the top-flight UEFA Champions League, which is reserved for the Top 4.

“It would be foolish to talk about winning the (Premier) League now. I think the next step is getting back into the Champions League and once you’re back, it’s a lot of income for the club and you can attract a lot of players who want to play in the Champions League,” said Hamann, hero of Liverpool’s 2005 Champions League conquest.

The Reds are entering the season with four new recruits –  Iago Aspas, Simon Mignolet, Kolo Toure and Luis Alberto. They are bent on keeping ace striker Luis Suarez, who is the target of Arsenal and is reportedly considering a move in his desire to play in the Champions League.

“Hopefully, winning the (Premier) League is not too far away; but it’s gonna be step by step. But I’m as hopeful this season as I’ve been in a long time because with the signing (manager) Brendan (Rodgers) made and the way they finished last season was very strong, (the team) plays very good football for great results, I think they have a good chance to finish in the Top 4,” Hamann said.

Nicknamed “Didi,” Hamann was best remembered for his gutsy performance for Liverpool in LFC’s Champions League final victory over AC Milan in 2005. Playing with a broken toe, the German midfielder came in as sub and energized Liverpool’s amazing fightback from 0-3 to force a 3-3 standoff and shootout. He knocked in the first goal in the penalty shootout which helped LFC win in the penalty, 3-2, for its fifth Champions League plum.

Hamann is also involved in “Seeing is Believing,” a global initiative of Standard Chartered and LFC to tackle avoidable blindness, spending time in Lagos to conduct clinics for Nigerian youth. Last Friday, he led a delegation to the Bangkok School for the Blind and was greeted by a rendering of LFC’s anthem, “You’ll Never Walk Alone.”

“We had a few coaches and about 40 kids and the community coaches gave a couple of hours of training with them and it’s great to see kids smile, put a smile on their faces with little things we brought like special balls, special equipment for them to train. It’s great to see kids having a good time and hopefully make a difference (in their lives),” he said.

Giving back to the community is a shared vision of the club and sponsor Standard Chartered.

“The two organizations share a lot in terms of doing (things) for the community. One of the biggest work for the community we’ve done is in the area of blindness and HIV awareness,” said  Neeraj Swaroop, Standard Chartered’s regional chief executive for South East Asia.

Hamann and Rush mingled with hordes of LFC supporters during the meet and greet at Central World Mall, as did captain and Thai fan favorite Steven Gerrard and three of his teammates. They held an open training session before screaming fans who braved Saturday’s heavy downpour.

The Reds were slated to play the Thai national team “War Elephants” in a friendly last night at Rajamangala Stadium as culminating activity of their three-nation Asian Tour.